Prominent People | Page 124 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

February 5, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Memoirs of Henry Obookiah

“A few months after (the death of ‘Ōpūkaha‘ia) a book appeared in New England – a thin, brown-covered volume of a hundred small pages. It told, in his own words and the words of those who had known him the story of the boy’s life and death.”

“The printer who set the type, struck off the sheets and bound them together did not know it, but that book was to launch a ship and a movement that was to transform Hawai‘i.” (Albertine Loomis’ Introduction in Memoirs of Obookiah)

“Memoirs of Henry Obookiah by Edwin W Dwight is the story of a young Hawaiian man from 19th century Hawai’i who lived for only 26 years, and yet whose brief existence changed the course of a nation and the people of Hawai‘i.” (Lyon)

“For the boy was ‘Ōpūkaha’ia (his American friends spelled and pronounced it Obookiah), and his life and early death and his hope of taking Christianity to his people were the inspiration for the Sandwich Islands Mission. The ship launched was the Thaddeus, which sailed with the pioneer company from Boston in October, 1819.”

“In the long run, the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions sent eighty-four men and one hundred women to Hawaii to preach and teach, to translate and publish, to advise, and counsel – and win the hearts of the Hawaiian people. …”

“Slender and simple as it was, this book shaped the future of Hawai‘i.” (Albertine Loomis’ Introduction in Memoirs of Obookiah)

“How could such a tiny book containing the biography of a young Hawaiian who died at the age of 26, in 1818, so compel a foreign nation to send its young people thousands of miles to a distant land to be committed to missionary service?”

“(A) young Hawaiian in a foreign land he was instrumental in befriending the very agents who became the cornerstone for the modern Protestant missions movement in America.”

“What had started on the other side of the Atlantic, through the persuasive works of William Carey and the formation of the Baptist Missionary Society in 1792, had now spread to America through a student-led movement by Samuel Mills Jr. and others, culminating in the formation of the ABCFM in 1810.”

“The brief life of Henry Obookiah was attributed to his being a catalyst for the founding of the Foreign Mission School in Cornwall, Connecticut. ‘The interest he [Henry Obookiah] aroused led the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, of Boston, to establish a Missionary School at Cornwall, Conn., for ‘‘the education of heathen youth’.’” (Lyon)

“(T)he intended audience of the Memoirs was the Christian community of New England, and that part of the book’s purpose was to stir the hearts of New Englanders towards the cause of missions in order that they would give both financially and materially to the Foreign Mission School.”

“The final chapter of the Memoirs is divided into three sections. The first section establishes Henry Obookiah as the most promising student at the Foreign Mission School and a model of both scholarship and Christian character.”

“The second section is short and is comprised of two letters written by Obookiah himself. The third section is an account of the sickness and death of Obookiah.” (Lyon)

“The Memoirs tell of the life of Henry Obookiah, how his family was killed by tribal warfare in Hawai’i, and how his life was miraculously saved. The Memoirs go on to describe Obookiah departing from Hawai’i at the age of 16 and arriving in New England.”

“The major portion of the Memoirs traces young Obookiah’s progress and chronicles the fact that he studied and boarded with a succession of Congregational ministers in New England. The effect of his studies and the living arrangements with such pious Christians had a most profound effect upon Obookiah, leading to his conversion to the Christian faith.

At the opening of the final chapter of the Memoirs, young Obookiah is a model student at the Foreign Mission School and the hope of the mission to the Hawaiian Islands.” (Lyon)

“If the churches of New England, knowing the purpose of God concerning Obookiah, had chartered a ship and sent it to Owhyhee, on purpose to bring him to Christ, and fit him for heaven; it would have been a cheap purchase of blessedness to man, and glory to God: …”

“… and were there no expedients now to rescue his poor countrymen, for whom he prayed, the end would justify the constant employment of such means, to bring the sons and daughters of Owhyhee, to glory.”

“But besides his redemption, God by his Providence towards him, has illustrated his government of the moral World, and added new evidence to the truth of the declaration, ‘All that the Father hath given unto me shall come.’” (Portion of Eulogy at the Funeral of Obookiah, Rev Lyman Beecher)

‘Ōpūkaha’ia Inspired the American Protestant Mission to Hawai‘i.

Ōpūkaha’ia, inspired by many young men with proven sincerity and religious fervor of the missionary movement, had wanted to spread the word of Christianity back home in Hawaiʻi; his book inspired missionaries to volunteer to carry his message to the Hawaiian Islands.

On October 23, 1819, the Pioneer Company of missionaries from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) from the northeast United States, set sail on the Thaddeus for the Hawaiian Islands.

There were seven couples sent in the Pioneer Company of missionaries to convert the Hawaiians to Christianity. These included two Ordained Preachers (note: Bingham and Thurston were ordained as missionaries at Goshen, a more complex position than preacher), Hiram Bingham and his wife Sybil and Asa Thurston and his wife Lucy; two Teachers, Mr. Samuel Whitney and his wife Mercy and Samuel Ruggles and his wife Mary; a Doctor, Thomas Holman and his wife Lucia; a Printer, Elisha Loomis and his wife Maria; a Farmer, Daniel Chamberlain, his wife and five children. They landed at Kailua-Kona, April 4, 1820.

Among the other Hawaiian students at the Foreign Mission School were Thomas Hopu, William Kanui, John Honoliʻi and George Prince ‘Humehume’ (son of Kauai’s Kaumuali‘i).

By the time the Pioneer Company arrived, Kamehameha I had died and the centuries-old kapu system had been abolished; through the actions of King Kamehameha II (Liholiho), with encouragement by former Queens Kaʻahumanu and Keōpūolani (Liholiho’s mother), the Hawaiian people had already dismantled their heiau and had rejected their religious beliefs.

“Memoirs of Henry Obookiah is a truly significant work in relation to both the history of the nation of Hawai‘i, which later was annexed by the United States, and the profound impact that it had upon American evangelical Protestant missions. It is rare that an individual such as Henry Obookiah would be a vessel chosen to affect two nations so profoundly.” (Lyon)

On August 15, 1993, ʻŌpūkahaʻia’s remains were returned to Hawai‘i from Cornwall and laid in a vault facing the ocean at Kahikolu Church, overlooking Kealakekua Bay.

Click HERE to view/download Background on Memoirs of Henry Obookiah

Commemoration of Bicentennial of ʻŌpūkahaʻia’s Death – February 17, 1818 – February 17, 2018 – The following are some of the commemoration events planned in the Islands and on the continent.

10 am (HST), February 17, 2018 State-wide bell ringing;
10 am, Feb 17, Haili Church, Kawaiaha’o Church & Hawaiian Mission Houses;
10 am, Feb 17, Mokuaikaua Church, Memorial Dedication plaque to Henry Obookiah;
10:15 am, Feb 17, Mokuaikaua Church, Henry ‘Ōpūkaha’ia Memorial Concert;
3 pm (Eastern) Feb 17, Remembrance at the original ʻŌpūkahaʻia’s gravesite at Cornwall, CT;
9:30 am, February 18, 2018, commemoration services at Kahikolu Church;
9 am & 11 am, Feb 18, Mokuaikaua Church Services, Guest Speaker to discuss Life of ‘Ōpūkaha’ia;
10 am, Feb 18, service at Henry ‘Ōpūkaha’ia Memorial Chapel/Hokuloa Church, Punalu‘u;
10 am (Eastern), February 18, 2018 Services at UCC Cornwall;
6 pm, February 17, 18, 24, 25 at Kalihi Union Church, ‘Glory In His Soul’, a musical drama on life of ʻŌpūkahaʻia.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Memoirs_of_Henry_Obookiah

February 3, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Wynee

King Kahekili, from Maui who had conquered O‘ahu, was living at Waikiki on May 25, 1787 when the British fur-trader Imperial Eagle (Master William Barkley) became the first Western ship to anchor in Waikiki Bay.

Her Log on that date records that the ship “hove to in a sandy bay under the lee of the island [O‘ahu], SW, to ENE, off-shore about one mile, sounded twenty-five fathoms, coral rock.”

“At noon, light breezes and hazy. Came alongside several canoes with fish. One of the natives remained on board signifying an intention to go in the ship.”

“(T)his appears to be the first record of any vessel at Waikiki” (Howay), explaining that the King George (Nathaniel Portlock) and the Queen Charlotte (George Dixon) while visiting during the preceding year in nearby Maunalua Bay, had not anchored in Waikiki Bay. (McClellan)

Recorded history suggests that in May 1787 Wynee (also spelled Winee) was the first Hawaiian to leave the islands on a western ship, the British ship Imperial Eagle. She served as the personal servant of the captain’s wife. (Duncan)

“This lady (Barkley’s wife) was so pleased with the amicable manners of poor Wynee, that she felt a desire to take her to Europe; and for that purpose she took her, with the consent of her friends, under her own particular care and protections.” (Meares)

Wynee is described by Mrs. Barkley as an engaging young woman, of fine character, quick to please, anxious to learn, and an agreeable companion. (McClellan)

The Imperial Eagle reached Nootka Sound (Vanucouver Island) about the middle of June, 1787. (Howay) Wynee was the first Hawaiian to visit the northwest coast of America. (McClellan)

The next Hawaiian to see the Northwest Coast was Kaiana, a chief of Kauai. He was taken by Meares in the Nootka to China in September, 1787. After spending some months there he sailed with Meares in January, 1788, for the Northwest Coast. (Howay)

Captain Barkley sailed for China in about three months. Soon after his arrival at Canton in November, 1787, he gave up his plans to return to Hawaii and America. So, Wynee was left stranded in Canton. (McClellan)

About January of 1788, Wynee sailed from Canton aboard the British vessel Felice, commanded by John Meares, for the northwest coast. On board was Kaiana. (McClellan)

Wynee became ill. “(T)he poor, unfortunate woman justified our fears concerning her, that she would never again see her friends or native land.”

“She every day declined in strength, and nothing remained for us, but to ease the pains of her approaching dissolution, which no human power could prevent.” (Meares)

“Nor did we fail, I believe, in any attention that humanity could suggest, or that it was in our power to bestow. She had been for some time a living spectre, and on the morning of the fifth of February (1788) she expired.”

“At noon her body was committed to the deep; nor was it thought an unbecoming act to grace her remains with the formalities of that religion which opens wide its arms to the whole human race, of every colour, and under every clime, to the savage as well as to the saint and the sage.” (Meares)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Wynee_by_John_Meares

February 2, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

YMCA

The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) was founded in London, England, on June 6, 1844, in response to unhealthy social conditions arising in the big cities at the end of the Industrial Revolution (roughly 1750 to 1850).

Growth of the railroads and centralization of commerce and industry brought many rural young men who needed jobs into cities like London. They worked 10 to 12 hours a day, six days a week.

George Williams came to London 20 years later as a sales assistant in a draper’s shop, a forerunner of today’s department store. He and a group of fellow drapers organized the first YMCA to substitute Bible study and prayer for life on the streets.

The YMCA idea, which began among evangelicals, was unusual because it crossed the rigid lines that separated all the different churches and social classes in England in those days.

This openness was a trait that would lead eventually to including in YMCAs all men, women and children, regardless of race, religion or nationality. Also, its target of meeting social need in the community was dear from the start. (YMCA)

By 1851 there were 24 Ys in Great Britain, with a combined membership of 2,700. That same year the Y arrived in North America: It was established in Montreal on November 25, and in Boston on December 29. (YMCA)

“One of the most interesting foreign YMCA’s of this period was that of Honolulu formed … by ten young Americans, (including) the Association’s first president, Sanford B. Dole”. (Hopkins)

“In Spring 1869 in Honolulu, three friends met at Peter Cushman Jones’s home and decided to form the Young Men’s Christian Association of Honolulu.”

“In the first year, many community leaders joined the YMCA Honolulu, including Sanford B. Dole, Theo H. Davies, and Samuel M. Damon.” (UH)

“The ‘Young Men’s Christian Association,’ of Honolulu, appears to have started in to do a good work. They have fitted up the room up-stairs in the Sailors’ Home building, in neat and convenient style.”

“A card in a prominent place, informs us that ‘This room is free to all; it is supported by the voluntary contributions of the Citizens of Honolulu, and Is under the management of the Young Men’s Christian Association. Visitors are requested not to smoke in the room, and not to take away newspapers or magazines.’”

“There, we have given our young men, who appear to be in earnest in their desire to improve themselves and brother men, this notice, and only hope that their enterprise will prove a success.” (Hawaiian Gazette, September 29, 1869)

“(I)n 1876 a Chinese YMCA was organized for the immigrants of that period. It did a notable work.” (Hopkins)

During the first twelve years, YMCA Honolulu operated with no building or paid employee. Then, a building was built, and the first paid secretary started working. (UH)

On February 4, 1882, the Privy Council addressed, “A petition by Henry Waterhouse and others for a Charter of Incorporation for the Young Men’ s Christian Association of Honolulu … On motion of Mr. Castle, it was voted that the Privy Council recommend that the Charter be granted.” (Privy Council, February 4, 1882)

Later that year, the foundation for a building generally referred to as ‘YMCA Hall’ was laid on a lot the purchased the year before at Hotel and Alakea streets in downtown Honolulu (makai of Hotel and Ewa of Alakea). (Papacostas)

“During the next decade, work for Japanese was inaugurated; the program for native Hawaiians was also kept separate from that for Americans.”

“A secretary of the Honolulu Association was recruited in 1885 by H. J. McCoy, the aggressive San Francisco secretary, who visited the Islands in that year.” (Hopkins)

“From 1887 to 1922, Hawaii newspapers ran the ‘YMCA Notes,’ which reported the local YMCA news, including club meetings and events (e.g. preparing for boy summer camp). The content would usually fit in one to two columns and appear in a middle page of the newspaper.” (UH)

“In the mid-1890s the Honolulu YMCA published a paper, held religious services at the barracks, admitted women to membership—two of whom carried on the boys’ work program—and reported a YMCA among the lepers of Molokai.”

“This unusual Association was a remarkable example of what occurred when the YMCA idea was carried to a foreign shore by American emigrants.” (Hopkins)

Today, the YMCA of Honolulu is one of the largest non-profit organizations in the state. Every year, more than 100,000 individuals are served in a variety of programs.

YMCA programs and services are open to children, teens, women and men of all ages, faiths and backgrounds. In all programs, the core values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility are promoted.

Programs and services center around three areas of focus: Youth Development, Healthy Living and Social Responsibility.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

YMCA Building

YMCA Hall

January 31, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

The Russians are Coming

The 1700s and 1800s were a time of imperial expansion and colonial occupation for many European nations, including Russia. In 1733, Russian Tsar Peter I commissioned the Great Northern Expedition, an ambitious exploration of Eastern Siberia and the Northern Pacific Ocean.

Vitus Bering (1681-1741), a Dane in the service of the Russian Navy, and Aleksei Chirikov (1703-1748) a Captain in the Russian Navy, were commissioned to explore and map Russia’s northeast coast.

In 1741, their explorations landed them in Alaska and they realized that the Siberian fur trade could be profitably extended further east. In the beginning, private companies conducted the fur trade throughout the Aleutian Islands and around Kodiak. (NPS)

In 1799, Tsar Paul I consolidated these private companies into one entity, the Russian American Company. This gave the Russian American Company (RAC) a monopoly on Russia’s North American trade. It also entrusted the RAC with the government of Russia’s North American colonies. (NPS)

During the early part of this century Russian America was governed by Count Baranoff, who resided at Sitka, he was a ‘rough, rugged, hospitable, hard-drinking old Russian; somewhat of a soldier, somewhat of a trader; above all, a boon companion of the old roystering school, with a strong cross of the bear.’ (Alexander)

When Baranof laid down the management of the Russian American Company, the dominion of the Czar in North America was at its greatest breadth

Its outposts were from St. Michael to Ross in California; from Sitka to Attu Island. For nearly 30 years he had been extending the limits of the possessions of his Imperial Master (Andrews)

Anxious to establish a trade with the Sandwich Islands, and well aware of their growing importance, in 1814, Baranoff sent the Bering to negotiate with the native monarch. (Dall)

Hawai‘i’s Russian story starts when three-masted Bering (sometimes spelled Behring) wrecked on the shores of Kaua‘i’s Waimea Bay early on the morning of January 31, 1815. The Behring had a load of seal skins/otter pelts bound for the Russian-American Trading Company in Sitka, Alaska.

The ship’s cargo and the sailors’ possessions were confiscated by Kaua‘i’s ruler, Kaumuali‘i.

The Russian-American Company (the owner of the ship and its cargo) sent Bavarian Georg Anton Schäffer to the Hawaiian Islands to retrieve the cargo or seek appropriate payment.

Later that year, Schäffer arrived in Honolulu. There, Kamehameha granted him permission to build a storehouse near Honolulu Harbor.

But, instead, Schäffer began building a fort and raised the Russian flag. When Kamehameha discovered this, he sent several of his men to remove the Russians from O‘ahu, by force, if necessary. The Russians judiciously chose to sail for Kaua‘i, instead of risking bloodshed.

Once on Kaua‘i, Schäffer gained the confidence of King Kaumuali‘i, when he promised the king that the Russian Tsar would help him to break free of Kamehameha’s rule.

“It would appear that the Russians had determined to form a settlement upon these islands; at least, preparations were made for the purpose; and I was informed by the commandant, that if I chose, I might get a situation as interpreter.”

“Amongst other things, I told him that I understood the Russians had some intention of forming a settlement on the Sandwich islands.”

“This reached the captain’s ears; and he gave me a severe reprimand, for having, as he expressed it, betrayed their secrets.
He desired me to say no more on the subject in future, otherwise I should not be permitted to quit the ship.”

“I know not what obstacle prevented this plan from being carried into effect; but although the Neva remained several months in the country, I never heard any more of the settlement.” (Campbell)

In 1817, however, it was discovered that Schäffer did not have the support of the Russian Tsar. He was forced to leave Hawai‘i, and Captain Alexander Adams, a Scotsman who served in the navy of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i, raised the Kingdom of Hawai‘i flag over the fort in October 1817.

Eventually, over-hunting greatly diminished the number of sea otters and fur seals in the North Pacific. By the 1850s, New Archangel, which once owed its existence to the fur trade depended instead on a shipyard, a fish saltery, sawmills and an ice-exporting business.

The RAC and the Russian government no longer profited from the colony, instead focusing their main commercial activities on tea importing. The Crimean War highlighted Russian America’s vulnerability to attack by other European nations.

The Tsar decided to sell in 1867 rather than lose the territory in another war. The US States bought Alaska for $7.2 million, or approximately 2 cents per acre, and Russia ended its 126-year-old North American enterprise. (NPS)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Russian_Fort_Elizabeth-Fort_Survey-Map-Reg-1360 (1885)

January 30, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

William Watman

William Watman was part of Captain Cook’s crew; he had joined the Resolution as an able bodied seaman, but later was classed as a Gunner’s Mate.

“He had formerly served as a marine twenty-one years; after which he entered as a seaman on board the Resolution in 1772, and served with Captain Cook in his voyage toward the South Pole.” (Cook’s Journal) “(A)fter which the Captain managed to obtain a place in Greenwich Hospital for his ageing seaman.” (King)

“On learning that Cook was preparing for his third voyage Watman managed to convince Cook that he would be a worthwhile member of the crew and he joined the Resolution on 3 Feb. 1776 whilst it was still in the dock at Deptford being re-fitted.” (Captain Cook Society)

Shortly thereafter (April 26, 1776, while the Resolution was still in the River Thames), Watman prepared his will, “In the name of God Amen, I Wm. Watman, Mariner on board his Majesty’s Ship Resolution, James Cook Esqr. Commander, being of sound and disposing mind and memory do hereby make this my last Will and Testament,”

“First and principally I commend my Soul into the Hands of Almighty God hoping for Remission of all my Sins through the Merits of Jesus Christ my Blessed Saviour, and Redeemer, and my Body to the Earth or Sea as it shall please God,”

“And as for such wordly estate and effects which I shall be possessed of or intitled unto at the time of my decease, I give and bequeath the same as followeth, that is to say …”

“I give and bequeath unto my Brother Thomas Watman of Strutton in the County of Surrey, all such wages, sum and sums of Money as now is, or hereafter shall be due to me for my service or otherwise on Board the said Ship, or any other Vessel or Ship …”

“… and I do hereby nominate, constitute and appoint my said Brother Thomas Watman sole Executor of this my last Will and Testament,”

“And I do give and bequeath unto my said Executor all the Rest and Residue of my said Estate whatsoever both Real and Personal, hereby revoking and making void all other and former wills by me heretofore made and do declare this to be my last Will and Testament …”

“Names as Witnesses in the presence of the said Testatr. Jams. Cook, Wm. Bligh.” “Normally members of the crew call on their messmates to witness their will. But Watman was able to call on Captain Cook and William Bligh the Master of the Resolution, to be his witnesses. This must indicate the esteem in which he was held by the ship’s officers.”

“During the voyage, he had frequently been subject to slight fevers, and was a convalescent when we came into the (Kealakekua) bay, where, being sent on shore for a few days …”

“… he conceived himself perfectly recovered, and, at his own desire, returned on board; but the day following he had a paralytic stroke, which in two days more carried him off.”

“He died on board the Resolution on 1 February 1779 whilst it was anchored in Kealakekua Bay.” (Captain Cook Society) “Watman was supposed by us to be about sixty years old” (King)

“At the request of Terreeoboo (Kalaniopu‘u), the remains of this honest seaman were buried on the morai (Hikiau Heiau); the ceremony being performed with great solemnity.”

“Kaoo and his brethren were present it the funeral, who behaved with great decorum, and paid due attention while the service was performing.”

“On our beginning to fill up the grave, they approached it with great awe, and threw in a dead pig, together with some cocoa-nuts and plantains.”

“For three successive nights they surrounded it, sacrificing hogs, and reciting hymns and prayers till morning.”

“We erected a post at the head of the grave, and nailed thereon a piece of board; on which was inscribed the name and age of the deceased, and the day of his departure from this life.”

“These they assured us they would not remove, and they will probably be permitted to remain, so long as such frail materials can endure.” (King)

Later, a monument was erected near Hikiau Heiau, the inscription reads: “In this Heiau, January 28, 1779, Captain James Cook R.N. read the English burial service over William Watman, Seaman. The first recorded Christian Service in the Hawaiian Islands. Erected by the Kona Civic Club, 1928”.

With respect to his will, it “was proved at London, the fourteenth day of October in the (year) of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty, before the Worshipful Francis Simpson, Doctor of Laws, Surrogate of the Right Worshipful Peter Calvert, Doctor of Laws, Master Keeper or Commissary of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury …”

“… lawfully constituted by the Oath of Thomas Watman, the Brother of the deceased and sole Executor named in the said Will, to whom Administration of all and singular the Goods, Chattels and Credits of the said deceased was granted he having been first sworn duly to Administer.” (Captain Cook Society)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger